You know that Job interview question “What is one time you faced a difficult situation and how did you resolve or handle the situation?” I like that question, because let me count the ways!

Just spent a week working with a US partner, the US partner’s supplier, the supplier’s International division, the US supplier again, their superior, and their superior’s superior — they concluded we couldn’t do what needed to be done.

After reviewing the online system capabilities, I found a way and instead we have successfully set up a program to run the system out of both US and China. It just took 10 minutes to adapt, and voila! We are up and running!

If nothing else, working internationally gives you a lot of experience in handling difficult situations and in finding innovative solutions. Sometimes you have to patchwork things together with duct tape and glue to get it operating, but success is always possible — somehow, somewhere. You just have to be open-minded enough to try many solutions until you find the right one.

One of the more useful business models popular today remains the PEST(EL) model. PEST(EL) is a macroeconomic analysis model often used by businesses to assess the general market conditions of a new or changing environment. The model lays out a set of normally 4-6 market factors relevant to the business and assesses strengths, weaknesses, and changes therein.

First introduced by Francis Aguilar in 1967, the model has undergone several transformations through the years. Therein lies one its greatest strengths – the model is flexible and is easily adapted or modified to suit the particular market needs or situation.

The most basic and standard format is known as PEST representing political, economic, social, and technological factors.

The model lays out an assessment of key issues or opportunities offered by the national economy and industry. Management can review the factors and quickly assess general potential within the industry or quickly discard economies that are not feasible.

The model itself is not in-depth and must be combined with other models (e.g. SWOT, Ansoff, or Five Forces) should the company wish to continue its analysis. It can also be combined with other macroeconomic models for a more reliable assessment. Detailed information regarding market competition, competitive advantages, supply chain improvement potential, etc. is not covered within this model.

Still, it does provide management with a relatively quick overview of the market itself. Markets not even relatively viable are quickly identifiable, saving management both time and money within the research and strategy stages. At the end of the PEST analysis, the management and decision makers should also have a general understanding of the economy and industry — trends, emerging patterns, major issues, potential opportunities. Management can then more easily identify where to focus its attention and research going forward.

As mentioned above, the model can also be adapted to include factors other than the traditional four. Some variations include: